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/ 18 October 2006

De Klerk congratulates SA on Security Council seat

Former president FW de Klerk congratulated South Africa and the foreign ministry for being elected to the United Nations Security Council. In a statement on Wednesday, De Klerk said the overwhelming vote that South Africa received in the UN’s general assembly was an indication of the esteem in which the country was held in the international community.

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/ 18 October 2006

Unpacking the Jali Commission report

In 2001, the Jali Commission started its inquiry into alleged incidents of corruption, maladministration, violence and intimidation in the Department of Correctional Services. It is now 2006 and the report of commission, named after Thabane Jali, the chairperson of the commission, has been publicised.

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/ 18 October 2006

‘Growing threat’ to media freedom

Civil society and journalists must unite to reverse the trend of declining media freedom before it becomes difficult to reverse, the Freedom of Expression Institute said on Wednesday. In a National Press Freedom Day statement, the institute said it hoped that trends such as the deteriorating state of media freedom at the South African Broadcasting Corporation would not continue next year.

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/ 18 October 2006

LeisureNet judgement set for December

Former LeisureNet joint chief executives Peter Gardener and Rod Mitchell have to wait more than a month to know whether they will be found guilty of the array of charges against them. A marathon session of closing arguments, which lasted more than a week, finished on Wednesday, and acting Judge Dirk Uijs said he would deliver his findings on December 1.

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/ 18 October 2006

SAA set to launch new low-cost carrier

South African Airways (SAA) will launch its new low-cost carrier, Tulca, next month to gain a share of the fast-growing budget-travel market, MPs heard on Wednesday. ”Passengers want no-frills and low-cost, and … we have to respond to what passengers want,” SAA CEO Khaya Ngqula told the public enterprises portfolio committee.

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/ 18 October 2006

Ex-Boks line up to tackle crime

Former South African rugby stars from the national team on Wednesday offered President Thabo Mbeki a hand to tackle the country’s notoriously high crime rate. An eight-member team of former Springbok players, led by ex-captain Wynand Claasens and wing Jacques Olivier, handed over a letter signed by more than 200 of their colleagues at the president’s office.

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/ 18 October 2006

No diet for Kim Jong-Il despite ban on luxuries

A gourmet with a taste for the good life, North Korea’s reclusive leader Kim Jong-Il will continue to enjoy his favourite French wines and foreign delicacies despite a United Nations embargo on luxury goods for Pyongyang, analysts say. A thriving black market will likely ensure Kim a steady supply of what he likes best, they said, with smugglers always ready to sneak over the border.